Howell wetlands....finishing up last week's photos

Howell wetlands has several different areas of interest.This is the more shallow "marsh" and right now it is mostly covered with these beautiful yellow flowers. The dragonflies love this pond.
I think the flowers are gorgeous, but I do not know their name.

The "lake" is actually called the slough on the map. This heron was sitting on the boardwalk railing when we arrived so we went the other way and left him alone.
Later he was stalking the edge of the lake fishing.

He made a catch!

Hurrying over the edge of the lake with his prize....a pretty good sized fish.

Gulp!

Swallow!

Wash it down! I'm always amazed they can swallow a whole fish in one gulp.

Another area of the wetlands is the creek which is covered in duckweed. Mike spotted this Green Heron and got a couple shots before it took off.

He was on the branches of a huge tree that was uprooted this past year and fell into the water.

There are some lovely Hibiscus growing along the creek and I just love this pink one!

I also like these "arrowheaded" plants. Don't know what they are.

Still a few turtles hanging around on the logs, but nothing like in the spring when they are really warming themselves.

A popular branch in the shade. After you cross the creek, you can walk a boardwalk through the woods, but we didn't go that far on this day.

Back where the heron was fishing, there were a couple of Killdeer on the boardwalk.

Getting ready for take-off!

Between the creek and the two bodies of water is the meadow where I often take photos of flowers, butterflies and bugs. I have also seen a few birds in the deep grasses, but it is hard to see them from the paths.

This wetland is a real treasure for our city and I'm so glad that I found it last year! My blog would be empty without this place!